This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1940. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.
The Hoh River Resort has operated as a destination camping resort since the 1940s, with site improvements including a gasoline pump island, convenience grocery store, and campgrounds on a five-acre parcel. Cleanup activities centered on the removal of two registered gasoline underground storage tanks (USTs) and petroleum-contaminated soil — approximately 100 cubic yards and an additional 5 tons excavated across two separate phases — while a third abandoned UST was rendered inert by filling it with concrete slurry. Contaminated soil was consolidated on-site and then transported off-site to a treatment facility, and the final excavation was backfilled and paved. A hole in UST1 was identified as the source of the petroleum release. That history could support an insurance cost recovery claim against carriers who issued insurance policies 40+ years ago.
Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible
Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Washington. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.
The resort's gasoline service operations date to at least the 1940s, and soil testing for total lead in the excavated material confirms that leaded gasoline — phased out prior to 1986 — was dispensed at this pump island for decades. Occurrence-based Commercial General Liability policies issued to the resort's operators during that pre-1986 window carried no effective pollution exclusion and remain enforceable today. The documented remediation costs here — two UST removals, multi-phase soil excavation, off-site treatment, and site restoration — represent expenditures that historical carriers may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management & Forensic Accounting
The Restorical Proven Process
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.